Aston Villa close in on cut-price Philippe Coutinho transfer

Philippe Coutinho has reportedly “fully agreed” to make his Aston Villa move permanent as the deal appears to edge closer.

The Brazilian arrived at Villa Park on loan from Barcelona in January, largely in an attempt to revive his career and be reunited with Villa boss Steven Gerrard . Having already given fans several magical moments in his short spell, the 29-year-old has registered four goals and three assists in 15 appearances for the club.

It was initially reported that it would cost Villa £33million to make Coutinho ’s stay permanent. However, latest reports from around Europe have suggested that this has since changed and Villa could complete the move for a cut-price fee.

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has reported that Villa are “closing” on a permanent move for the former Liverpool playmaker. The Italian further claimed that the terms are “fully agreed” on Coutinho’s side as “he’s more than happy with Gerrard”.

Romano also suggested that the fee will “close to €20m”, in the region of £17m, describing the conversations with Barcelona over the exact figure as the “final detail”. This followed an earlier report from Spanish journalist Gerard Romero, who announced that the deal was “closed” on Tuesday morning.

Romero stated the move had been completed in the “last few hours”, after reports on Monday evening had suggested that negotiations had shifted. The journalist for Jiantes FC also suggested that Barcelona will retain 50% of the player’s image rights, while both Gerrard and Coutinho sharing an agent was also mentioned as a “key” factor.